Zimbabwe's president has more than doubled the price of petrol, hoping the increase will end severe shortages that are fuelling public anger.

President Emmerson Mnangagwa said the increase in the state-controlled price of fuel should ease the shortages that have gripped the country in recent weeks. The president left Zimbabwe yesterday on a trip that will end with his attendance at the World Economic Forum meeting in Davos, Switzerland, angering critics who say he should stay at home to deal with the crisis.

The petrol shortages show the southern African country battling its worst economic crisis in a decade due to a lack of foreign currency.

The lack of fuel means that police walk for kilometres with handcuffed suspects because their vehicles are grounded. Ambulances, school buses and public transport vehicles spend days waiting in line for fuel.